Weather & Earth Science News

As expected, Met Office confirms wettest winter on record for UK Northern lights illuminate UK - nothing seen from Evesham town though  Spring frost fears after mild winter in France In NSW heavy rain sparks flash flooding in Newcastle and the Hunter region Meanwhile in Qld, record dry conditions in Brisbane and southeast as bleak autumn looms though, ironically, in the interior, evacuation alert as Mount Isa region hit by flooding Drought hits southeast Asia Scientists liken Chinese smog to 'nuclear winter' Offshore windfarms could tame hurricanes before they reach land .... according to a computer simulation that is, and assuming there are thousands of them coincidently in the hurricane's path. NASA launches game-changing satellite for global precipitation monitoring Now this sounds rather wierd at first, but it does make sense: smell of forest pine can limit climate change - the scent turns into aerosols which in turn reflect sun...

The irony of our very mild, wet & windy winter: most snow in hills in 69 years says Hamish MacInnes - based on his personal experience, but I doubt he's wrong. Unsettled weather continues; for Eire no let-up in March as rain and high winds to batter country but overall doesn't look like being quite so bad for Britain: more like normal March weather. Toronto remains under extreme cold weather alert as they get ready for the return of the polar vortex Unusual clouds blanket north Georgia A rather bizarre suggestion, but could giant walls protect the USA from tornadoes?   They'd only need be 1000ft high and 150ft  wide ...... World begins 2014 with unsual number of extreme weather events Study links temperature to a Peruvian glacier's growth and retreat - rather than precipitation changes Geoengineering side effects could be potential disasterous, research shows - as I've said all along: better deal with what we know than change it into som...

Israel experiencing driest February in 87 years - and this comes after Tel Aviv marks driest January on record Winter drought threatens Kosovo capital Whilst Turkey's drought fuels fears Meanwhile, California is finally set to get rain, but it won't quench the drought there El Nino seen approaching as models highlight warmer Pacific And another silly story as HS2 could increase risk of local flooding say Tory MPs - presumably they oppose all building on all farmland and anywhere where flooding is possible?   And maybe we should remove existing railway lines too?   Mind, this is nearly as silly: National Farmer's Union condemns flooding plan s - presumable because upland  pasture is 'more valuable' than lowland wheat fields?   You do wonder sometimes ..... 'Biggest observed meteorite impact' hits Moon , last September Now volcanoes contribute to recent global warming 'hiatus' - whilst I continue to question whether ...

After heavy rain over the weekend, another landslip closes A83 road in Argyll at the Rest & Be Thankful and last week's large Bournemouth seafront landslide caused by rainfall Storm brings hail, tornado to Canterbury in NZ An Arctic blast for Kazakhstan Climate change won't reduce deaths in winter, British study concludes New online tools tracks treeloss in 'near real time' - so now you can watch them rainforests burn from the comfort of your home ...... Oldest bits of crust firms up idea of cool early Earth And just for a laugh, this was in the Mirror yesterday: one month of rain set to fall in one hour today - though the story beneath qualifies that as nearly a month's rain in several hours ..... and only over the Cumbrian fells "with towns and villages escaping the deluge"  ..... 

Yesterday, both the Express and the Mail had front page headlines proclaiming could the Met Office have been more wrong?    Oddly, the Mail's story quickly disappeared from the front page of their website though, perhaps in embarassment after the MetO's response ?  Oops.  The fact is, the MetO issued no such forecast and the report issued to contingency planners (so secret it's published every month on their website!) gave a 15% probability that winter would be in the wettest category (so slightly less likely than the average 20% probability but by no means unlikely).   Nathan Rao went one further to say that he did accurately forecast the weather this winter, just that we had rain instead of 100 days of snow .....   The comments below his 'story' are quite amusing. At least the Mail got this story right: January was the fourth warmest on record, despite eastern US freeze - the full NOAA report is here And winter doesn't give up in the US ...

No surprise that this winter wettest on record - Met Office .   Though has to be pointed out that the total winter rainfall in Evesham has yet to exceed that of July 2007. So why was flooding not as severe in parts of the Midlands?    Well I've answered part of that above. The Avon hasn't flooded any more than it does most winters.   But locally, we have very few properties on the flood plain and yes, defences have tended to work. UK floods: damage 'could have been prevented' to some extent though. US Midwest enjoys break from freezing weather but braces for flooding whilst in New York, brutal weather brings new challenge: ice falling from skyscrapers Queensland's rivers flowing again in record breaking wet spell but drought not busted yet Here, ancient forests exposed by storms along the coast of Cornwall 4.1 magnitude earthquake confirmed in Bristol Channel   Marshall Islands 'grow back' after Pacific storm Climate change...

In the US, some cities are close to snowiest winter in history whilst Cleveland sets 30-year record with 10th sub-zero day   - here in Evesham we've not even had half that number of sub-zero night.  And it's been the least snowy winter on record .... In Australia, Sydneysiders escape the worst of the weather as storms head north with a flood warning after huge rainfall over parts of Queensland whilst flash flooding wreaks havoc in Geelong , Victoria. Some good news for a change: farmland butterflies bounce back thanks to last years warm summer   I think I forgot to post  this earlier, but have we learned our lessons on flooding?   Clearly not since most of the recommendation of the Pitt Review -commissioned after the 2007 floods - have been ignored. Increase in Arctic cyclones is linked to climate change whilst warming from Arctic sea ice melting more dramatic than thought Huge asteroid passes Earth nearly on year after Chelyabinsk met...

I know this is the Mail, but assuming it's true that river quango has allowed 190k new homes on flood plains since 1996   with the Telegraph also reporting that flood-hit areas earmarked for more homes , then the EA and local councils are most definitely culpable for the current floods.  Flood plains are called flood plains for a reason and building on them is not only stupid from the perspective of building a house you know will be flooded, but it increases flooding in areas that would not normally expect to flood. Second Japan snowstorm leaves thousands stranded as death toll rises to 23 In Scotland, we've had so much snow our resorts could stay open until summer Australian heatwave frequency 'surpasses levels previously predicted for 2030' whilst over the weekend South Australia's rural towns cop a drenching after Adelaide's wettest day in 45 years and in Queensland a flood warning for Townsville after 278mm of rain falls in region .  Bu...

Snowstorm hits Japan anew, killing 12 and standing thousands Here on Saturday, couple swept 1,000ft down Mount Snowdon in avalanche, while Lake District suffers 5ft snow drifts and fierce winds blow 44-tonne lorry into petrol station whilst UK floods set to continue as more rain hits today One consequence of the weather are terrifying holes that are opening up all over Britain - well, parts of the SE of England ....  whilst in the SW, thousands of tons of sand are dumped across A-road In Eire, a holy war as complaints floods in over 'disaster' weather including lack of forecast for downtown Nicaragua The US Southwest warmed by record heat whilst in the NW, Howard Pass wind chill reaches -97 degrees, breaks Alaska state record Brazil rations water in 140 cities amid worst drought in decades And it's hardly a new suggestion that a wavier jet stream 'may drive weather shift' as we've been saying that for several years - it's this m...

Sadly, two die as fierce storms continue to hit Britain and Ireland whilst in Wales, UK weather gets even freakier: After storms, floods and gales - a bog fire raged And if there is global warming, this is what it could look like in Britain warns Geoffrey Lean Meanwhile, snow continues to fall in the Highlands, with more pictures in the Mail as Scottish ski resorts have more snow than Sochi (and, indeed, many other ski resorts around the world) US storm that left traffic misery hits eastern Canada Indonesian airports reopen after Java volcano eruption NASA data find some hope for water in Aral Sea basin   First global geologic map of Jupiter's largest moon Ganymede details an icy world

Second wave of huge snow storm hits US north-east with first snowstorms now thundersleet: Northeast is hit by rare meteorological phenomena as 'mammoth dome of arctic air' that has left 800,000 without power, killed 21 and grounded more than 7,000 flights threatens to dump more snow Floods follow heat in Adelaide's crazy summer whilst NW flood damage runs into millions Here, another day, another storm ...... fresh storm brings more rain and strong winds with the south likely to feel the brunt of the gales this time, and further flooding likely. River Thames breaks record for water flows in January Mapping the floods So how bad have these floods been?   Not yet nearly as bad as 2007 or 2000 And yes, the floods are awful, but we must keep a sense of proportion Winter weather wreaks havoc in Portugal But warm temperatures mean it's been turning a bit soggy in Sochi More heavy snow paralyses Tokyo, commuters Missing monsoon lead to 'years with...

Another violent storm yesterday with havoc! As floods hit new areas, 108mph winds cause power cuts, shut motorways and force passengers off trains .   Today, thousands of homes left without power and travel disrupted whilst clear-up begins after 100mph storms hit Wales .    It's also reported that River Severn reaches record level in Worcester - but that's only since river gauges were installed, historic floods have been higher. In Eire trail of destruction sweeps country whilst in Northern Ireland today, drivers battle through snow and ice And a winter storm affecting US east coast as havoc persists in the South But don't worry, because summer 2014 'likely to be hottest on record' ....... well, no.  But if an El Nino develops later this year, 2014 (or 2015) could, globally , be the warmest year on record.   That said, I've a sneaky suspicion we could well be in for quite a good spring or summer and after a very mild start we could a...

More flooding fears as storms forecast for today with 100mph gales forecast along coasts in Wales, and another storm coming again on Friday - with warnings that due to the saturated ground, floods could 'last for months' . Meanwhile, further snow falls hit higher routes across Scotland whilst in Port Glasgow, road shut after bus gets stuck in snow - not a flake has fallen in Evesham yet the winter ....  But it is raining again! In Eire, after yesterday's snow,  batten down the hatches again as winds to hit 160kph Was a Man village hit by small scale tornado yesterday? And there's flooding in Iberia too as central Portugal struggles with rising water levels and 2014: the year of incessant rain in Spain whilst storms eat in Aquitaine coast Deadly snow and ice storm takes aim at US South In Queenslands, rains final reach the drought-stricken outback as Kowanyama swamped with 1.2m of rain but other towns not so lucky In Malaysia: heat wave to p...

Today's top of 42.5c breaks new record in South Australia for number of summer days with maximum over 40 degrees UK floods: 400 Surrey homes 'completely waterlogged' with plenty of pictures in the Mail as floods hit Windsor as nearby villagers flee homes swamped by the Thames and there's  more severe weather expected in stricken areas - rain today and more rain and gales tomorrow.... And can UK transport network cope with floods?    Well it should, it's not as though we haven't been warned for years to expect increased incident of flooding.  Though clearly such warnings have by and large been ignored - hence the proloferation of more building in flood prone areas and the failure to improve drainage. And sea threat to force retreat of communities in Wales California drought similar to historic drought in Texas Burundi floods: many dead in Bujumbura Flowing water on Mars appears likely but hard to prove And improved dating techniques...

Thames reaches record flood levels while thousands of homes alongside river are threatened by rising floodwaters as sixteen areas in South are warned of risk to lives as the Met Office says that evidence 'suggests climate change linked to storms' .   The full report can be read here The Severn is also in spate with Worcester city center roads closed 'for a week' by floods , though in Evesham the Avon is now back down to 'normal' winter flood levels.  On Saturday, coastal areas in west hit by renewed gales And here's 27 staggering new pictures of the Somerset Levels floods More rain (and gales) expected this week .... Meanwhile, in the US, snow set to hit the South again as big freeze goes on in the North East   Man killed by falling tree as wild weather blasts Tasmania whilst Jason Edwards captures images of the fire emergency in Morwell ,  Victoria.    I think I prefer our floods!   That said, there are floods in Australia to...

The least surprising headline of the week:  southern UK set for gales and more rain .   Meanwhile, it's not just the SW suffering as Kent homes flooded after heavy rainfall And skiers warned of terrain traps in Scotland's mountains - where the snow just keeps on falling and (as noted in my weekly mountain weather forecast on Ukweatherworld) the avalanche risk remains very high. Japan snowfall disrupts air, rail and road transport Heavy rainfall hits Buenos Aires: one dead and more than 2000 evacuated In Victoria,  Goongerah and Martins Creek residents urged again to leave as bushfires sweep through the area And earliest footprints outside Africa found in Norfolk , as Happisburgh.  We'll know if they were local folk or visitors by whether or not they have webbing between their 6 toes ......

The aftermath of the midweek storm emerged yesterday with  Dawlish storm damage rail closure 'to cost millions'   and pictures of before, during and after: southern storms .   Meanwhile yet more rain yesterday (but at least without the winds) and more 80mph winds and torrential rain spell a nightmare weekend for battered Britain .   Even in the Channel Islands, more than 50 roads flooded in Guernsey as flood warning issued after Guernsey endures 'horrendous' weather midweek.  And yet more to come next week too .... So has the UK truely 'stocked up' on rainwater?   It looks like it has. Half-million still without power after US ice storm Snow disrupts China holiday traffic A look back and ahead at Greenland's changing climate Red skies discovered on extreme brown dwarf

Now this is what I call ice!  Amazing scenes as severe storm encases Slovenian town in ice Here, another night of high winds, high tides and floods ......  thousands of homes suffer power cuts with in Devon and Cornwal storms: homes evacuated and in Eire, clean-up in Cork after fresh flooding overnight.   More storms expected, especially across southern Britain later this week and the relentless onslaught of the Atlantic continues.  But at least it's not cold and snowy ...... And UK going in 'wrong direction' on flooding, experts say 'More snow than Sochi' is the cry from Glenshee as one of Britain's wettest, windiest winters continues to pile the snow above 2,500ft in the Highlands.  But I've yet to see full cover of snow on the snowgate webcam , down the road in Braemar, where like everywhere else it's just been wet. Another snowstorm slams US Plains, heads for Northeast And in Afghanistan, troops under attack - from snow : the first t...

Queensland could see two Fujiwhara effects as ex-Cyclone Fletcher and ex-Cyclone Edna threaten to merge with lows Meanwhile, rain brings light relief as Sydney endures driest start to summer in 70 years In the US, another snowstorm slams Northeast in first wave of wintry weather this week Storms cause £4m damage in Cornwall Iran snow cuts power to nearly 500,000 homes Dramatic flood rescue in Pretoria Alaska's Arctic icy lakes lose thickness over recent decades whilst Greenland's fastest glacier reaches record speeds Ecuador's Tungurahua volcano spews ash and lava

Coastal communities in Devon and Cornwall flooded by high tides and strong waves, with more weather warnings as rescuers search for missing angler - another wet (and windy) week to come.   And in Eire, new flooding hits south and east coast Parts of Central and Eastern Europe hard-hit by heavy snowfalls, icy weather Drought-hit California unable to supply state water - of course, it's not just the lack of rain but also the sheer number of people living there, wanting to water their lawns and gold courses ..... And yesterday was Groundhog Day 2014: Punxsutawney Phil sees shadow , six more weeks of winter.   Or, presumably, for us, six more weeks of autumn ..... Cyclone Fletcher forms off Gulf of Carpentaria Meanwhile, in Brazil, Sao Paulo swelters in record heatwave And Indonesian volcano Mount Sinabung eruption causes 16 deaths with more pictures here

Military evacuated snowed-in pasengers in northern Serbia and southern Austria on highest avalnche alert after heavy snow whilst  Italy battles floods as bad weather batters Europe Meanwhile, images released of mountain rescue in Cairngorms to help show just how bad conditions are in the hills this winter - one of the snowiest in living memory Southwest and Midlands braced as rain pours - with more to come next week.  I recorded 100.5mm in January (about 180% of average), but many parts have had much more - and it all goes straight into the rivers with ground in all parts completely saturated now.   And flood warnings as storm to wreak havoc in Eire too. But 'why are we wasting all this water' asked Cambridge councillor Mike Mason who is quite right.  I'd not be at all surprised if we have water shortages later this this year or next ....  Storm 'Basyang' hammers Visayas, Caraga region in the Philippines More rain predicted for...